Interview with Loretta Lizama

Authors

Loretta Lizama
California State University, Monterey Bay

Files

Identifier

LizamaLoretta_2013_CRP

Description

Loretta Lizama was born in 1934 and raised in Salinas, California. Her parents were both immigrants from the Philippines who came to America to pursue a college education. After Loretta was born her parents left their collegiate pursuits behind and entered into the agriculture business. Stanley Rigunay, Loretta's father, worked as a labor contractor in Watsonville. The "Rigunay's camp” was a source of rich memories, which Loretta shares throughout the interview. Among the most prominent of these memories were the cockfights, the diversity of the labor force, and her parents' strong work ethic. Loretta’s memories her father's involvement in the agriculture industry sparked recall of WW1I and her experience with discrimination and anti-Japanese sentiment. After Loretta's father passed at a young age, Loretta’s mother entered into the restaurant business and opened Loretta's Cafe. During Loretta's college years at UC Berkeley she would return to Salinas on the weekends to help her mother as a waitress at Loretta's Cafe. The topic of Loretta’s Cafe elicits memories of Loretta’s mother, her husband Jose and their decision to elope, and the culture of Chinatown in Salinas, CA. Loretta was briefly the proprietor of Loretta’s Cafe after her mother passed, but ultimately sold the cafe to her Aunts.

Interview Date

10-27-2013

Interviewer

Cierra Rauch

Geographic Coverage

Salinas (Calif.)

Subjects

Chinatown (Salinas, Calif.); Filipino American families; Agriculture; Labor camps; Filipino American businesspeople; Cooking, Philippine

Type

Sound

Genre

Oral histories

Digital Format

audio/mp3

Language

eng

Digital Collection

Chinatown Renewal Project

Repository

Archives & Special Collections of California State University, Monterey Bay

Disclaimer

These oral histories express the personal views, memories, and opinions of the interviewee. They do not represent the policy or views of California State University, Monterey Bay.

Recommended Citation

Lizama, Loretta and California State University, Monterey Bay, "Interview with Loretta Lizama" (2013). Chinatown Renewal Project. 24.
https://digitalcommons.csumb.edu/ohcma_chinatown/24